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Fort Lewis College Athletics

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VB vs. ASU
Hayden Mangan, Fort Lewis Athletic Communications
Sophomore Natalia Lambos was named the week 11 RMAC Setter of the Week

Volleyball draws No. 1 MSU Denver in RMAC Tournament Quarterfinal

11/9/2022 10:37:00 AM

By: Angela Roberts, Assistant AD - Communications
DURANGO, Colo. – For the Fort Lewis College volleyball team, it all came down to the final match of the regular season. To be even more specific, it came down to relentless defense and a swing out of the middle from a true freshman. The tenacity paid off as the Skyhawks squad earned a spot in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Tournament with a four-set triumph over New Mexico Highlands.

How it Happened
If you weren't there…you may have missed the most competitive volleyball match that Whalen Gymnasium has welcomed in recent history. Both teams had something to play for, Fort Lewis College seeking a seed in the tournament and NMHU hoping to end its season with a road win.

Though offense eventually won the match, it was defense that had fans on their feet from start to finish. The teams totaled 159 digs on the night with 79 coming from the Skyhawks. The dig mark was the second-highest clip of the season and the most in a four-set match since November 2, 2019. The relentless pursuit paid off as Fort Lewis improved to 10-14 on the year and ended the conference portion of the schedule with an 8-10 record.

Taking a peek at the box score for the match, the Skyhawks and Cowgirls both hit .188 for the match. NMHU held a 9-5 edge in blocks while Fort Lewis had a 9-6 advantage in service aces. Four Skyhawks had double-digit kills, led by Hobie's 15-kill effort. Senior Rylee Johnson followed with 13 kills on 29 swings (.276). Junior Lauren Shea had 13 kills and 12 digs for her third double-double of the season. Butler was the team's most efficient attacker with 11 kills (.556) to go along with three service aces. Sophomore Natalia Lambos dished out 48 assists and came away with a season-high 12 digs. Senior Kamryn Lopez led the team with 19 digs for the match.
 
Volleyball

Lambos earns first RMAC Setter of the Week honor
The sophomore setter is hitting her stride at the right time for the surging Skyhawks. Lambos totaled 96 assists over the weekend, averaging 12.0 assists per set. She coordinated a Fort Lewis offense that saw four players in double-digit kills in the team's key win over New Mexico Highlands on Saturday. The win in the season finale secured the Skyhawks a spot in the RMAC Tournament.

Saturday's win saw Lambos sprawling out on defense with a season-high 12 digs--one shy of a career-high. She is averaging 8.13 assists per set this season to go along with 136 digs and 36 total blocks. The Denver product owns 799 career assists and 244 career digs after two seasons in the blue and gold.
 
Setter of the Week


Four earn RMAC All-Academic nods
Representing the Skyhawks on the RMAC Honor Roll are seniors Rylee Johnson, Kamryn Lopez, and Joviana Romero and sophomore Korrina Pace.
 
VB


To be eligible for honor roll consideration, a student-athlete must carry a 3.30 cumulative grade point average (GPA) and must have been an active student at the institution for at least two consecutive semesters or three consecutive quarters. First Team All-Academic members were voted on by the conference's sports information directors for meeting those criteria as well as demonstrating outstanding performance on the court.

The senior trio is making the honor roll list for the third time in their respective careers. Johnson, a Cell and Molecular Biology major with a Pre-Health certificate will graduate in the spring and carries a 3.76 cumulative GPA. Lopez boasts a 3.88 cumulative GPA while studying Business Administration with a minor in Borders and Languages. Rounding out the senior class is Romero with a 3.83 cumulative GPA in Exercise Physiology. Pace is earning Honor Roll recognition for the first time in her Skyhawks career and is doing so with a 3.92 cumulative GPA while studying Exercise Physiology. 

Skyhawks draw No. 1 MSU Denver in RMAC Quarterfinal
The road to the semifinal round at the RMAC Tournament is never easy, but it is exceptionally more difficult for the Skyhawks. The team faces the task of competing against No. 1 MSU Denver for the third time this season and the second time in as many weeks.

Fort Lewis dropped a four-set match early in the season and was swept by the Roadrunners at the end of October. In the recent loss, MSU Denver hit at a .264 clip while holding Fort Lewis to just a .009 mark for the match. Hobie led the team with eight kills to go along with three blocks. Senior Joviana Romero played in the final two sets and picked up four kills. Sophomore Sarah Wilkey led the team with 10 digs, her first double-digit dig outing since September 6th.

MSU Denver cruised through the regular season with an unblemished 18-0 record en route to the conference title. The team now owns 40-straight regular-season wins which dates back to the 2020 season. The team is hitting at a .290 clip to rank third in NCAA Division II. Mikayla McClinton and Kelsey Gordon lead the way with a combined efficiency of .361 and 279 kills.

Rylee Hladley, unsurprisingly, is leading the team with 3.52 kills per set, a mark that ranks second in the league. Unique to many programs in this era of volleyball, but not so much to the Roadrunners, the nation's top team runs a 6-2 offense through Amela Qershia and Delaney Eckhardt. MSU Denver has been known to run a two-setter offense, and the team has certainly reaped the benefits of having so many offensive numbers to call on.

While offense and big swings are a typical fan-favorite, the defense of MSU Denver cannot be ignored. Led by Ashlyn Cianciulli at 4.36 digs per set, the team is averaging 15.28 digs per set. Hladky ranks second on the team with 2.75 digs per set, followed by Qershia at 2.15. Serve receive is another bright spot with the team boasting a .942 reception percentage versus .919 for the opposition. Ember Canty and McClinton each average over one block per set, both ranking in the league's top four.

A look at the RMAC Tournament
This year is the first that the entire RMAC Tournament is held in one location, and the new norm is kicking off at the Auraria Event Center in Denver. Matches will be played Thursday through Saturday with Saturday's slate serving as the RMAC Championship match.
 
  • Quarterfinals - Thursday, Nov. 10
    Match 1 - #8 Fort Lewis at #1 MSU Denver - 5 p.m.
    Match 2 - #5 CSU Pueblo vs. #4 Colorado School of Mines - 7:30 p.m.
    Match 3 - #6 Colorado Christian vs. #3 Colorado Mesa - 2:30 p.m.
    Match 4 - #7 South Dakota Mines vs. #2 Regis - 12 p.m.

    Semifinals - Friday, Nov. 11
    Match 5 - Winner Match 4 vs. Winner Match 3
    Match 6 - Winner Match 2 vs. Winner Match 1

    Championship - Saturday, Nov. 12
    Match 7 - Winner Match 5 vs. Winner Match 6

AVCA Division II Coaches Poll
MSU Denver tops the poll with 31 first-place votes, followed by Wayne State College with 15 votes. The RMAC has three additional teams in the top 25 poll. Regis University remained at No. 14, followed by Colorado Mesa at No. 17. Colorado School of Mines rounds it out in the No. 22 spot.
 
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